Water and Real Estate

You may think this is a story on waterfront properties or maybe even water in basements, but you would be mistaken. When one talks about basic human needs, generally it includes food, water and shelter. It is in many ways ironic that our government’s focus has been more sharply drawn to fossil fuels rather than water. Fossil fuels fired the industrial revolution of the past two hundred years, but there are alternatives to this ancient, soon to be exhausted fuel. Water, however, has been a pre-requisite of virtually all life, particularly human life. It is also incongruous that there is a water shortage particularly given the fact that the majority of the surface area of the planet is water.

There are some arid facts:
36 States will face severe water shortages over the next five years.
The U.S. used a total of 148 Trillion Gallons of Water in 2000 (last available statistics). That was for every purpose: commercial, manufacturing, residential, agricultural, etc.
That translates to 500,000 gallons per person in the US. (Brian Skoloff Associated Press)

California uses 23 Trillion Gallons of water a year. Much of that is from the Snow melt in the Serra Nevada Mountains. Global Warming will reduce that reservoir.

There are 1000 desalination plants in the United States. The larges in Tampa Florida produces 25 million gallons of water a day, only 10% of the area’s daily demand.

Climatologists predict the Southwest United States drought will last 90 YEARS.

The rest of the world is in a more serious situation. The Continent with the most people has the lowest supply of water. Asia. While the ‘water wars’ in the western United States are fought in court, that may not be the case in the rest of the world. Water is not a luxury. It is absolutely necessary.

While living in Rhode Island, the Ocean State, may ‘insulate’ one from
the most serious water shortage challenges, it does not allow us to ignore it.
Some self evident truths: We need water for life. Businesses, also, need water to provide jobs. We need a State-wide water policy, (not necessarily a single water provider). A pro-active water policy would promote conservation. We need to ‘reuse’ waste water for irrigation, and non human consumption needs. We need to encourage new technologies to save water. (The Chinese are now growing aerobic rice.). We also provide businesses with reliable, fair and consistent commitments for water. Maybe we should consider building a major desalination plant here. Good government is a steward of its resources. Great government anticipates. It prepares for crisis. But more importantly, great government looks at the future with plans in place. The Constitutional Convention was all about governance. A Rhode Island Water Summit to create the architecture and the opportunities for the future of Rhode Island is now appropriate. It is fitting that a potential model for 21st century water stewardship would emanate from Rhode Island. Slater Mill on the Blackstone River is where the Industrial Revolution began on this Continent. We have been given fair warning. It is time to respond. www.phippsrealty.com